Greg Champion

Greg Champion (born 1955)

He is an avid Australian rules football fan, supporting the Adelaide Crows, The song would peak at 31 on the ARIA charts following the 1994 AFL Grand Final. He grew up in Hectorville, a suburb of the South Australian capital Adelaide, and was educated at Pulteney Grammar. before launching a successful solo career.

Champion's highest-selling album is the 1995-released Aussie Christmas with Bucko & Champs with Australian country music star Colin Buchanan. In 1998, Aussie Christmas with Bucko & Champs 2 was released featuring 25 Christmas-themed songs.

Champion would play his song "That's the Thing About Football" at both the 1995 AFL Grand Final and 2002 AFL Grand Final matches.

In 2006, his song "Been There, Done That" peaked at number 4 on the Country Music Chart, having been released that year as part of The Shack Tapes.

In 2009, Greg released his album Strayana.

In 2010, Champion was awarded Victorian Male Vocalist in the Victorian Country Music Awards for his song "this was my town (Marysville)".

In 2012, just prior to heading off to his 22nd Tamworth Country Music Festival, he surprised many with his album Emergence which had a wide range of musical styles of 11 original songs.

In 2017, Champion headlined the All Star Musical Comedy Showcase at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

In 2021, Champion moved back to Adelaide after more than four decades in Melbourne, forming a new band with Scott Opie, Tom Stehlik and Goof Miller.

Discography Studio albums YearAlbum detailsPeak chart positionsCertifications(sales thresholds) AUS Work Hard Play Hard Released: 1985 Label: Impressive Records Greg Champion Released: 1990 Label: ABC/EMI That's What I Like About Football Volume I Released: 1994 Label: Massive (7310152) 31 Everybody Loves to watch the Cricket Released: 1995 Label: Massive (7310314) That's What I Like About Football Volume II Released: 1995 Label: Massive (7310492) Aussie Christmas with Bucko & Champs (with Colin Buchanan) Released: 1994 Label: Massive (7310782) 39 AUS: Gold Football is a Funny Game Released: 1996 Label: Massive (0630159252) Australian Music Released: 1997 Label: Massive (7320462) Aussie Christmas with Bucko & Champs 2 (with Colin Buchanan) Released: 1998 Label: 67 AUS: Platinum Stand Back Australia Released: 2000 Label: Warner Shady Tree Released: 2002 Label: Greg Champion (champs003) North & South Released: 2004 Label: ABC Country (13672) Cricket's on the Radio Released: 2005 Label: ABC Country (14292) The Shack Tapes Released: 2006 Label: ORIGiN (OR 069) Strayana Released: 2009 Label: Compass Bros. (063CDCB) Emergence Released: 2012 Label: Greg Champion A Whole Different Story Released: 2013 Label: Greg Champion Happy Travels Released: 2017 Label: Greg Champion That Keilor Beat Released: 2020 Label: Greg Champion

Compilation albums Title Details Best of Greg Champion Released: 2003 50 Fave Footy Ditties Released: 2010 Label: Shock At This Stage – Songs 1990-2010 Released: May 2011 Label: Greg Champion (CHAMPS008) Thirty Years of Footy Songs Released: 2012 Label: Greg Champion Thirty Years of Footy Songs Vol II Released: 2013 Label: Greg Champion All the Fun Ones Released: 2015 Label: Greg Champion (CHAMPS016) Gather My Fishing Lines: A Greg Champion Collection Released: 2016 Best of 1985-2015 + Happy Travels Released: 2017

Charted and certified singles +List of charted and certified singles, with selected chart positions Title Year Peak chart positions Certification Album AUS "That's the Thing About Football" 1994 31 That's What I Like About Football "Aussie Jingle Bells" 1995 - ARIA: Gold Aussie Christmas with Bucko & Champs

Awards and recognition Champion was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the 2022 Queen's Birthday Honours.

ARIA Music Awards The ARIA Music Awards are a set of annual ceremonies presented by Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), which recognise excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of the music of Australia. They commenced in 1987.

Country Music Awards of Australia

The Country Music Awards of Australia (CMAA) (also known as the Golden Guitar Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, celebrating recording excellence in the Australian country music industry. They have been held annually since 1973. (wins only) 1994 "May Your Fridge Be Full of Coldies" Video Track of the Year Tamworth Songwriters Awards The Tamworth Songwriters Association (TSA) is an annual songwriting contest for original country songs, awarded in January at the Tamworth Country Music Festival. They commenced in 1986. Greg Champion has won two awards. (wins only) 1994 "May Your Fridge Be Full of Coldies" by Greg Champion

1996 "Don't Call Wagga Wagga, Wagga" by Greg Champion and Jim Haynes